Orson Welles
|birth_place = Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S. |death_date = |died = Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |occupation = Actor |yearsactive = 1931–1985 | spouse = Virginia Nicholson (1934–40) Rita Hayworth (1943–48) Paola Mori (1955–85) | partner = Dolores del Río (1938–41) Oja Kodar (1966–85) | relatives = Richard Hodgdon Head Welles (father) Beatrice Ives Christopher Welles Feder (son) Rebecca Welles Manning (daughter) Beatrice Welles (daughter) Michael Lindsay-Hogg (son) |height = 6'1" |series = I Love Lucy |character = Himself |episodes = "Lucy Meets Orson Welles" in Season 5 }}Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) guest appeared as himself on "Lucy Meets Orson Welles" in the Season 5 episode "Lucy Meets Orson Welles". An equally gifted director, writer, actor and producer for film, stage, radio and television. Mini-Biography Career Welles first gained wide notoriety for his October 30, 1938 radio broadcast of H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds. Adapted to sound like a contemporary news broadcast, it caused a number of listeners to panic. In 1941, he co-wrote, directed, produced and starred in Citizen Kane '', his first film appearance, which has been parodied by the FOX-TV series ''The Simpsons many times and is often chosen in polls of film critics as the greatest film ever made. The rest of his career was often obstructed by lack of funds, incompetent studio interference, and bad luck, both during exile in Europe and brief returns to Hollywood. Despite these difficulties Othello won the 1952 Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and Touch of Evil won the top prize at the Brussels World Fair, while Welles himself considered The Trial and Chimes at Midnight to be the best of his efforts. Welles received a 1975 American Film Institute Lifetime Achievement award, the third person to do so after John Ford and James Cagney. Critical appreciation for Welles has increased since his death. He is now widely acknowledged as one of the most important dramatic artists of the 20th century, in 2002 being voted in a BFI Top Ten Directors poll by the British Film Institute as the greatest film director of all time. http://www.theyshootpictures.com/gf1000_top200directors.htm "TSPDT – The 1,000 Greatest Films: The Top 200 Directors"]. They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? Theyshootpictures.com. January 2010. Retrieved January 27, 2011. Directorial style His distinctive directorial style featured layered and nonlinear narrative forms, innovative uses of lighting such as chiaroscuro, unusual camera angles, sound techniques borrowed from radio, deep focus shots, and long takes. He has been praised as a major creative force and as "the ultimate auteur."Rosenbaum, Jonathan. Discovering Orson Welles. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California: University of California Press. 2007. Pp. 6. Welles followed up Citizen Kane with other critically acclaimed films, including The Magnificent Ambersons in 1942, and Touch of Evil in 1958. Acting career honors Well known for his baritone voice,Christey, Jaime N. "Orson Welles: An Incomplete Education". Senses of Cinema. Sensesofcinema.com. Retrieved May 3, 2010. Welles was also a well-regarded actor and was voted number 16 in the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years... list of the greatest American film actors of all time. He was also a celebrated Shakespearean stage actor and an accomplished magician, starring in troop variety shows in the war years. References External links *Orson Welles at Fandango *http://www.wellesnet.com/ Wellesnet: The Orson Welles Web Resource * *Orson Welles: A Man of a Certain Ego by Rodger Jacobs at Pop Matters Category:Actors Category:Guest stars Category:Characters